4/30/08

Another PR Problem

The IDF says it did not know that it was firing at a TV crew when it killed Reuters journalist Fadel Shana on 4/16/08.

His car had clear press markings, and his clothes had clear press markings.
Israeli troops were unable to identify Reuters News cameraman Fadel Shana as a journalist before they fired at him from a tank, the Israeli army said on Wednesday, citing the preliminary results of an investigation.

Shana died while filming on a road in central Gaza on April 16. Five other Palestinians also died in the attack.

Shana had been traveling in a vehicle that was marked with large press and TV stickers on the front and sides and was wearing blue body amour with "Press" in large blue letters on a white fluorescent panel on the front.

Responding to repeated requests for an official explanation of the incident, Israeli military spokeswoman Major Avital Leibovich said the army had not yet completed its investigation but would provide a full account as soon as possible.

"The initial investigation showed they were not identified as members of the press," she said.

I'm no military expert, but I find it impossible to believe that the IDF doesn't have the latest, greatest laser sight technology on all their tanks and weapons. So either one of two things happened:

1. They didn't use the sights and fired indiscriminately at a bunch of Palestinian men, not knowing or caring who they were or what they were doing.

2. They used the sights, saw that Shaha was a journalist, and killed him anyway.

So which one is it? Do they just fire indiscriminately at Palestinians, or do they specifically target journalists? Because I don't see how they can justify shelling these people unless they had some information on who they were. And the fact is, they were unarmed journalists and civilians posing no threat whatsoever to the tank parked a half mile away. So did they know that and not care, or did they not bother to find out before firing?

You know, a moral person would not fire a tank shell at a group of unidentified people. It's really as simple as that. Every moral person can see this, and no amount of public relations spin can make this truth go away.

By the way, American Citizens, do you like knowing that we paid for the IDF to have the very best military technology so that they can use it to kill innocent people? Isn't it enough of a scourge on humanity that our own enormous military has killed innocent civilians in our names, that we must augment our shame by enabling the Israeli army's atrocities?

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